Dromaeosaur
' Dromeosaurids', also known as raptors, were a group of theropod dinosaurs, differing from the other meat-eaters by their light and agile skeletons, keen senses and the deadly sickle-like claws on their feet. Some of the dromeosaurids could've been partially feathered (and as such they may have had external parasites dwelling there, such as the one shown to bother a pterosaur in the fourth episode of WWD), and possess various skeletal features that connect them with birds, especially flightless ones. Dromeosaurids 'appeared by early Cretaceous time period, in such beasts as the 'Utahraptor, featured in the 4th episode of Walking with Dinosaurs. At six meters in length, it was almost the same size as some of the smaller, more ancient theropod dinosaurs (i.e. ceratosaurids, etc) of the previous, Jurassic epoch. By raptor standards, Utahraptor was a heavyweight, living on its own or in small family groups, similar to modern jackals and coyotes. Walking with Dinosaurs features it hunting Iguanodons and armored dinosaurs in Europe and North America. A smaller dromeosaurid, Dromeosaurus, was featured in the last episode of Walking with Dinosaurs (based on the same model as the earlier Utahraptor), even though that was chronologically incorrect. Unlike Utahraptor, Dromeosaurus was a relatively small predator, hunting Parksosaurs and similar small dinosaurs, and also harassing a tyrannosaur nest. As a predator smaller than Tyrannosaurus, it was shown to be hunting at night, with a greater success than during the day, as well. By contrast, the Velociraptors, featured in the second episode of Chased by Dinosaurs, were smaller than human beings, only 2 meters long at most. (The ones featured in the Jurassic Park movies are based on the Utahraptor '''instead, regarding the body dimensions.) They were probably more sociable than the previous '''dromeosaurids, and living 75-70 MYA ago, at the end of the Cretaceous, they were also probably some of the last of their kind (alongside Deinonychus, featured in the second, third and fourth seasons of Primeval, which lived a similar way of life to Velociraptor, but in North America, as opposed to Asia). It was probably just as active during the night as its american cousin Dromeosaurus was, because during the day it had to compete for prey with a bigger predator (Tarbosaurus) as well. Contrary to some popular idea, the Troodons, featured in the last episode of Prehistoric Park were not dromeiosaurids, but troodontids - a closely related group of theropod dinosaurs, and perhaps some of the smartest dinosaurs to have ever lived (discounting some of the modern birds). It had particularly large eye sockets (and eyes in the living animals), implying that it was probably a very nocturnally-active dinosaur. The troodontid '''family included '''Troodon and much-bigger Talos. However, just like all the other dinosaurs, raptors and troodontids died-out during the K/T mass extinction, or even long before it (as the Utahraptor, who went extinct 121 MYA). Hesperonychus, one of the dinosaurs featured in the upcoming WWD 3-D '''film, was also a '''dromeosaurid, but of a more specialized family, more closely related to Microraptor of China (featured in the third episode of Prehistoric Park) - a microraptorid, due to its small size. (About that of a modern house cat). This dinosaur most probably hunted small mammals (as suggested by the film), and died out at the end of the Cretaceous. Category:Walking with Dinosaurs Animals Category:Chased by Dinosaurs Animals Category:Prehistoric Park Animals Category:Primeval Animals Category:Walking with Wikia Category:Raptors Category:Groups Category:Carnivore Category:Carnivores Category:Walking with Dinosaurs 3D Animals